The World Falls Down Within You
by cloud9cas
Summary: Title subject to change. 10 years after Sarah's first trip into the Labyrinth she has grown up and moved out to live in the Big City by herself. She seems to have convinced herself that it was all just a dream-one that has been reoccurring as a nightmare ever since. What happens when she allows an owl to take shelter from the storm? Will her dreams come to life once more?
1. Dreams and Storms

_Chapter One: Dreams and Storms_

Sarah awoke with a start.

It took a moment to convince her body that she was not really falling. Her subconscious wouldn't let the dream drift away evidenced by her having it reoccur over the past ten years. As she lay on her stomach, she let her face fall back into her pillows before turning her head slightly to look out the window to see the New York sky was clouded over. Looking at the green numbers of her digital clock she gasped and rolled out of bed.

"I'm late!" she exclaimed startling her pet dog, Ambrocious who slept in the corner of her little studio apartment. Throwing open the armoire she searched desperately for something clean to wear to the library where she worked. She pulled out a black pencil skirt and a gray blouse and shooting a look at the clock it read 10:00 AM and she would be expected at work in 15 minutes.

Being forced to forgo a shower, she hastily slipped into her skirt and blouse, buttoning and tucking alternatively. Slipping into a pair of flats she threw her hair up into a bun of sorts and, grabbing her purse, was almost out the door when she heard a bark from Ambrocious.

"Ack!" she exclaimed dropping her purse at the door and doubling back to feed the dog. "Sorry, boy," she apologized hurriedly before running back to her purse, the door and down to the parking garage. Her bangs were steadily escaping the twist as she rummaged for her keys as she ran down the stairs.

She ran into someone on the landing who caught her easily.

"Woah, what's the rush, Sarah? Shouldn't you be at work already?" It was Max, her next door neighbor.

"Exactly! Please excuse me," she said rushed as she ducked around him.

"Right right. Have a good one," he called at her back.

Finally finding her keys, she dashed over to her little Mazda and unlocking the driver's side door, slid in slamming the door behind her before ramming her keys into the ignition. The engine wouldn't turn at the same time her cell phone started to ring obnoxiously.

Pulling it out and looking down at the caller ID she saw it was her supervisor and barely managing not to curse she flipped the phone open and to her ear as she clambered back out of the car to check the engine.

"Hey Beatrice! I'm just running a little late, I'll be there soon," she promised causing Beatrice to tell her to slow down.

"I was just calling to remind you that I am training our new hire today and so you needn't come in today," the older librarian said brightly. Sarah paused, processing what Beatrice was saying before slumping against the wall with a groan.

"That's right. And I must have remembered last night and turned off my alarm so I could sleep in," she walked through the logic more for her own benefit than that of her supervisor.

"Well... yes. I suppose you probably did, dear," Beatrice said warmly before reminding her that she would have the rest of the weekend off and to take it easy before hanging up the phone. With a tired sigh she threw her phone back into the front seat with her purse before pulling out her small tool set and returning to look under her hood.

She had only been messing around under the hood for about five minutes when she was joined by Max again who took to leaning against the car next to hers and watching her silently for a few moments. She hadn't noticed his arrival and continued, her head bent, as she checked the oil and the engine multiple times but she couldn't figure out what was wrong.

"Need some help?" he asked a tad smug when she yelped and nearly hit her head on the hood.

"Dang it, Max! Do you always have to sneak up like that?" she asked in irritation before testing a few more things under the hood before shaking her head, stepping back and closing the hood, in grease up to her elbows. He was chuckling at her and she moved to the driver's seat and tried to turn on the car again and it purred like a kitten. She sat there, letting it run for a little while, it covering up Max' chuckles. Turning it off, she tossed the tools into her glove box, picking up her purse and her phone carefully to get the least amount of grease on them then stepped out of the car, locking it and making her way back to her apartment.

"Hey," Max called catching up with her, "I thought you were going to work...?"

"I forgot until my supervisor called just now that I actually have the day off," she said with a sigh.

"Then how about it? You and me go see the sights," he began as Sarah had guessed he would seeing as he had been after a date with her since she moved in next door.

"No means no, Max," Sarah cut in as they reached her door.

"Ah come on, it's not like you have a boyfriend," he snarked and she paused before unlocking her door and opening it inward to be greeted by Ambrocious who immediately started barking and growling at Max.

"Shush, boy," Sarah said gently shooing him away from the door as Max tried to interpret her reason for pausing.

"Do you? Have a boyfriend, I mean," Max demanded giving Ambrocious a look of fierce dislike.

"Not your business," Sarah said before shutting and locking the door behind her and holding her breath until she was sure that Max had left. The shaggy little dog sat down, panting happily the moment Max was gone and was rewarded by a few scratches behind the ear.

"Good boy," she said before kicking her shoes off by the door and slipping in for a shower. It was going to be a long weekend.

"Ready for a walk, Ambrocious?" Sarah asked a few hours later when it still hadn't rained. He raced her to the door, winning since she was definitely not running, but she laughed at his antics nonetheless before bending down and hooking the leash to his collar. She slipped into a black trench coat, locking the door as they left after having made sure that Max was nowhere in sight.

Before long they were walking around the park within which Sarah loosed Ambrocious from his leash and threw a ball for him to fetch. There were very few people out and about and looking up at the sky she figured the clouds were pretty dark but a bark from Ambrocious brought her back earthward and she took the ball from him and threw it once again. Glancing around brought her to the startling realization that she was being watched by a large barn owl in a tree to her right. She watched it for a while and it continued to watch her back. Unblinking. It didn't even turn its head.

After throwing the ball again for Ambrocious she looked back at the tree to find the owl had disappeared. She nearly jumped out of her skin when she heard a thunderclap followed quickly by a growing rumble.

"Come Ambrocious!" she called, hooking him up to the leash once more before taking off at an easy run back toward the apartment. Halfway back, however, it began to pour in earnest causing them to run even faster. Another clap of thunder gave Ambrocious an extra kick of energy and he drug Sarah behind him the last 500 yards to the stairs which they both took a little more carefully seeing as the steps had been covered in rainwater. She dropped her keys a couple times before she managed to unlock the door, Ambrocious whimpering and whining the whole time.

When the door swung open, he ran in well trained to go straight to the bathtub to keep from getting water all over the house and Sarah laughed following him in and grabbing his towel and toweling him off after which he skittered into the main room and into his bed, looking balefully up at her as if to prompt her to build a fire.

Chuckling softly she toweled her dark hair dry before slipping into her bedroom for a change of clothes. She figured it was still early enough in the day to continue wearing jeans and thus donned them along with a comfortable sweater of dark blue. Throwing her hair up into a bun again she walked into the main room and calmly made a fire. It crackled quite merrily after a few minutes before she nodded at it and stood up looking about her little studio apartment. The furnishings were pretty sparse but then again she didn't spend any time entertaining guests that would require anything more than her chaise and bean bag in the living room or the few stools at the bar that served as her kitchen table.

The television wasn't used all that much either but it sat in the corner with its DVD player ready to play her a movie at a moment's notice. A short book shelf sat beside the chaise holding both her DVDs and her modest collection of books. Lord of the Rings, the Hobbit, Harry Potter, the Chronicles of Narnia all graced the shelves, well-worn and well-read. Sitting away from the collections on top of the bookshelf however sat the book she had read most often and for the longest time. Curling up on the chaise, Sarah reached for the book, taking it carefully in both hands and looking at the title. _The Labyrinth._ She caressed the red cover, the gold lettering and opened the book to the first well-worn and crumpled page settling in as a rumble of thunder reminded her distantly that there was a storm going on.

A knock on the door startled Sarah out of her impromptu nap and she recognized that the power must have gone out remembering that she had turned on the lights when she and Ambrocious and returned to the apartment. She picked her book up from her chest and returned it, dog-eared to its place on the shelf before slipping from the chaise, Ambrocious barking at the door and the person beyond it knocking again, harder than the first time.

Looking through the peephole she saw Max outside. She kept the little chain in place but unlocked the doorknob so she could open it enough to see him but not enough to invite him in. "Hi," she greeted with a yawn.

"The power went out and I was worried that you might be scared," Max said and through the haze of post-sleep she registered that he spoke in a want-to-be-heroic sort of tone.

"Well as you can see, I'm just fine and Ambrocious keeps me safe," she murmured in response moving to shut the door but he pressed his hand against it, seeing Ambrocious' eyes gleaming in the relative dark of the apartment.

"That's not a guard dog, it's a mop," he said in distaste.

"One that bites," Sarah reminded before pressing all of her weight against the door and locking it before Max could try to gain further entrance. She didn't trust him all that much and Ambrocious obvious dislike for the man did nothing to recommend him to her. Eventually, she heard him walk off in a huff and she patted Ambrocious' head. "Good boy," she mumbled, before yawning again and moving to light the candles that she had scattered around the main quarters of her apartment a few weeks ago when a similar power outage had occurred.

Once all the candles were lit, she scooped some food into Ambrocious' bowl and picked up his water bowl to fill it up in the kitchen. Grateful that her running water had nothing to do with the electricity she looked through her window out at the stormy sky—strangely it was only sprinkling but judging by the trees and the forks of lightening that chanced across the sky now and again it wasn't weather she wanted to be out in.

After giving Ambrocious his water she returned to the kitchen and looked about for something to eat. Not feeling particularly like cooking something over the fire, she settled for a peanut butter and raspberry jam sandwich. She began making it when she heard a tapping at the window. Sarah looked up and saw it wasn't the kitchen window so she moved into the living room and saw a barn owl tapping on her window.

Deja vu took over her mind, time slowed but she found herself inexorably drawn to the window. Ambrocious was barking once more in the background but despite that and the fact that a voice in the back of her mind said to not open the window, her fingers flipped the switch to unlock the window and she pulled it inward, the owl swooping in, rain drops in its wake and all the candles she had lit in the living room were blown out.

Sarah managed to close the window once more, the wind and rain bringing her back at least partially to her senses. She didn't lock it however just in case she needed to open it again to shoo the creature back out. Her heart was pounding and Ambrocious had run to her side, growling and cowering at the same time. First she looked down at the shaggy dog before turning slowing around to see a booted figure step into the glow of the firelight.

* * *

_Casidhe here! I have always wanted to try my hand at a fanfiction for Labyrinth. So I figured why not?_

_-CB_


	2. Goblins!

_Chapter Two: Goblins!_

Sarah blinked multiple times before she believed that there was actually a man in place of the owl that she had just let in through her window. He was tall and toned and though he had just been out in the rain (no matter how light) he was completely dry. His hair was the same shade of whitened gold as the owl's wings had been, his features striking and somehow familiar. However when he took a step closer, she took one to match but away.

"Sarah," he said, speaking softly and a chime like an old grandfather clock seemed to go off in her head.

"I don't know who you are, magician," she managed to stammer out, "please leave."

He stopped his advance a look of disbelief bordering on hurt lighting his face, the flames flickering making his dark iris look all the darker. "I admit it's been a decade but really, Sarah—I," she flinched away as he reached for her again.

"Don't talk to me as though you know me," she ordered, her voice strong. It was just another Max. A flashier more magically associated Max, but a man who had no place in her life just the same. Before he could speak again she managed to walk around him and was about to unlock the door to her apartment when she heard a knock on the door. She cursed her luck—she hardly needed two men in her apartment. Glancing back at the man she saw that he had taken up residency on her chaise, Ambrocious had followed her to the door and was barking again, and in frustration she silently looked through the peephole but she didn't see anyone.

"Why don't you open the door, Sarah. Goblins start to smell awful after too much time in the rain," he murmured having picked up her book from the bookshelf.

"Goblins?!" she exclaimed before briskly walking over to him and snatching the book out of his hand causing him to look up in surprise. "Goblins don't exist!" she hissed.

"Oh? But magic like transforming before your eyes is completely possible," he stated, a smirk forming upon his lips. She looked at him dumbfounded her mouth opening a closing a few times before she threw her hands up.

"That's not the point. The point is neither you nor your 'goblins'," she stressed the word to show her disbelief in the creatures, "are not welcome here. And I would like you to leave," she said, her heart racing as she strode to her door, unlocked it and looking directly at the trespasser gestured out. He continued to sit while the voice of none other than Max floated to her ears.  
"Sarah! I was just about to knock. I heard voices coming from your apartment and wondered if perhaps you had somehow gotten your television to work and thought I might join y- who is that?" his eyes having finally adjusted to the firelight and darkness beyond the door.

"No one," she said in exasperation, "he was actually just leaving."  
When the man didn't seem to be getting up, Max moved closer to the threshold. "Is this guy giving you problems?"

She waved her hand at Max, "No. He just doesn't understand English very well... clearly." Sarah walked back into her apartment, the creak of Max' entrance increasing her level of aggravation as she grasped the man on her chaise by the wrist... at least that was what she was planning on doing. The man however grasped her wrist in return allowing her to help him stand up but once standing, he spun her about keeping hold of her wrist and gently guiding her into the circle of that same arm so she could see the look on Max' face—which, not surprisingly, looked quite upset... nigh on angry.  
"Get your hands off her or—,!" Max started to threaten, volume rising when the man easily spoke over him though his tone was mild and even somewhat pleasant considering his next words.

"Or what? You'll kill me? Imps shouldn't threaten me," he said. Sarah however only paid half the attention that she normally would have for an internal battle was to be had. Had it been this hot in her small apartment all along? Were her cheeks burning with anger? Humiliation? Embarrassment? Or something else...? All she knew was she was frozen within the circle of his arm and though rationally she knew she should be fighting to get away she couldn't quite get the thought to the rest of her body.

"Who are you calling an imp?" Max seethed looking as though he were about to burst a blood vessel.

"You, of course," the man who held her said.

"Why you!" he shouted as he rushed toward them—or at least he tried. The man behind her had held his hand up palm facing Max and the outraged expression became dumbfounded then nervous.

"What's going on?"

"You have spirit, I'll give you that. Why not come work for me in my kingdom?" The chime of a grandfather clock echoed in the small apartment and just before the door shut there was a sudden flurry and scurrying of one to three feet tall creatures and Sarah pushed away from them—more securely into the strange man's encircling arm which, had she been looking at him, caused him to smile wickedly.

The door slammed shut and Max, still having control of his neck muscles, looked behind him and around him, nervousness turning to an abject fear. He swore and from the veins on his neck Sarah could tell he was fighting fiercely against whatever power held him.

"Stop messing with me, man!" Max stammered as the goblins chortled and cackled about him in the shadows cast by the fire in the hearth.

The window flew open, the wind coming through violently, the thunder rumbling almost simultaneously with the flashes of lightning. The cloak that he wore thrashed madly about their forms, the increasing fear on Max' face elicited a chuckle from the goblins' leader. "Very well," he murmured, "but just one small change..."

It happened quickly but it seemed horrifyingly slow as Max' nose elongated, his head shrinking and his body along with it. His blue eyes became black and beady and the noise that he emitted during the transformation was terrifying in the extreme and it took Sarah a moment to realize that she was screaming in terror.

Her body finally got the signal to fight against the arm that held her as the power that held Max up finally dropped him and he was rushed by the other goblins—he had been turned into the smallest one of the lot. "Well that was fun," the goblin leader said heartily before humming a little tune. Sarah had closed her eyes against the terrible sight of Max' fate.

Suddenly all was still and quiet aside from her captors humming. The wind had ceased, the cackling of the goblins had stopped. Opening her eyes revealed her to be in a place she recognized if only from her dreams. She stood upon the tallest tier of a tower and below she could see the outlay of the Labyrinth.

'Toby...!' a ghost of wind seemed to sigh in her ear but looking about her revealed that this time Toby wasn't the one who was captured... it was she.

"Sarah?" a voice seemed to float to her and she looked around, almost frantic. A name had come with the voice.

"Hoggle?! Hoggle, where are you?"

"Sarah!"

"Ludo!"

"My lady?"

"Sir Didymus?!"

Sarah turned and turned frantically searching but none of her friends appeared to her face. Collapsing to the ground she felt tears stinging her eyes as she called to her friends again... she felt something wet touch her hand and looking up sharply she saw Ambrocious who sat back on his haunches whining at her, upset by her being upset.

She heard the scuff of a boot to her left and looking up at him, his name brushed her mind and she wondered why it had escaped her memory until this point. "Jareth..." his expression was much like the one he had worn when she had seen through his power, when she broke his spell over her. He looked the same—he hadn't aged a day. "What did you do to them?" she whispered having almost no energy to be accusing. His gaze flickered past her briefly before he walked closer, slowly as not to scare her, he knelt in front of her, his arm draped over his knee as he looked into her teary eyes.

"Their... lives were long as long as they stayed in my realm. The more you called them, the older they became," he explained slowly. A sinking feeling began in her stomach. Sarah shook her head slowly—though she had asked, her mind didn't want to comprehend what he was trying to tell her. He cupped her chin in his hand to steady their gazes. "They are gone, Sarah... and you knew this at one time." Jareth's gaze became searching as he looked at every facet of her face, the horror in her eyes. "You blocked their memory out...just as you blocked your memories of me. Only your subconscious was true to itself. I can do many things if you would but ask but I cannot bring them back," he said softly as though reading her heart.

The first tear fell, the first cry was sounded and she hid her face in her hands. "What have I done?" echoed through her mind, increasing in intensity and ring until it broke through and used her voice. Her hands moved from her face to her ears and she tried to block out the sound of her own voice. Jareth sighed, picking her up deftly and jumping easily down to the first stair that would carry them down to the inner workings of his castle, Ambrocious followed behind and though he loathed the dog he knew Sarah would need the mutt.

He walked into the room that he had been preparing for her for this very moment and was temporarily upset that she wasn't in a better mood to appreciate the details that had been put into its conception just for her and her comfort and transition into this world. He placed her upon the bed and tucked the blankets in around her.

Jareth began to leave but something caught hold of his sleeve and he honestly was surprised to see Sarah looking up at him so piteously. "You said you would do anything if I would ask..." she prompted and he knelt beside the bed.

"As long as it would be beneficial, of course," he murmured, stroking her escaped wisps of hair from her face.

"Stop the pain," she plead. He pursed his lips.

"I will not stop it..." he said and at the immediate darkening of her gaze he continued, "but I will do my best to ease it." Sarah looked at him, unconvinced but he stroked his fingertips from the top of her forehead over her eyelids, the bridge of her nose and across her lips effectively sending her into sleep. "You need to stop running from the pain, Sarah," he murmured to her sleeping form as he stood up. Ambrocious leaped up onto the bed curling up beside her stomach and whimpering softly—the dog was old but had managed to hold on the longest, sensing his mistress' need.

Jareth shook his head in wonder at the mop with legs' tenacity as he walked to the bedroom door. He turned back, a gesture of his hand turning the light within the room down but not all the way out. His lip curled, pleased with Sarah being so close and he left the room, closing the door shut behind him.

* * *

_Casidhe here! Don't get too used to such a quick succession of updates... I do have three other fictions that I am working on here on this site. You are welcome to check them out if you have enjoyed my writing thus far and need something to pass the time.  
Favorites: how-you-turn-my-world!_

_Followers: Amaya Shinkuyoake, Jettira, Wilhelm Wigworthy, how-you-turn-my-world!_

_Reviews:_

_Wilhelm Wigworthy-thank you! I will continue to update... I really feel I have something here that I want to work on. :D_

_Honoria Granger-nope. Never been further east than Utah, sadly. Eventually, I do hope to travel to New York. Sorry that my first chapter didn't settle very well with you... I don't expect they shall return to the real world anytime soon so hopefully from here on in you won't be unsettled by any lack of accuracy._

_Thank you all for your warm welcome to this story! I wrote the first installment as wishful thinking and didn't really expect to get anyone reading until a few more chapters down the line. So, thank you, thank you! Ah, and my reference for Jareth will be the picture that is in use for the "cover page" if you will. (Granted you are more than welcome to imagine whichever version of Jareth you like most.) If you let me know how you feel about the direction, I would really appreciate the feedback._

_Ciao!_

_CB_


	3. Sunlight and Darkness

_Chapter Three: Sunlight and Darkness_

Sarah awoke slowly. She felt the warmth of Ambrocious beside her as she did every morning but even she in her half-conscious state knew that it was anything but a normal morning that dawned upon her. The bedroom she lay in was shrouded in a misty twilight from lights she could not locate. She blinked up at the ceiling as she contemplated what had occurred the day before. She had been sucked back into her dreams (or was it a nightmare?) by none other than the Goblin King, Jareth. However with the sudden appearance of the man in her life she had also been brought to the harsh realization that her friends that had helped her escape in the first place were all long dead and gone aside from the dog that acted as her own personal heater.

As Jareth had pointed out, she was sure that she had been aware of their passing at one point but she had locked away all her belief in both her friends' existence and in the reality of her time running through the maze to save Toby, her little brother, from becoming a goblin underling. She had made friends along the way and once she had escaped the Labyrinth, they had promised to always come to her side when called if she should ever need them. Sarah had clearly been too young to realize the strain that they had gone through to answer her beck and call.

'Their lives would have been long,' Jareth had mentioned the night before. Rubbing her eyes firmly she tried to push the Goblin King out of her thoughts but she also was acutely aware that she was in his castle and chances were he wasn't going to let her go as easily as he had the first time around.

She sat up in the bed and looked around the dimly lit room from her position. There was a dresser for clothes in the corner of the room. A vanity sat opposite the door to the room just as it always had in her home while she had lived with her father and stepmother. Slipping from the bed, she walked slowly over to the vanity and touched the wood of the desk before carefully sitting in the chair before it. There were pictures along the outside of the frames like there always had been. Pictures of Sarah with her mother and father, Toby... even her stepmother had a small feature in the bottom corner.

A snow globe sat on the shelf at eye level to her right and, picking it up, she shook it and saw a ballroom and herself in a lavish white and lavender dress—stardust in her hair along with a sparkling and twinkling head piece. Hastily she set it down before sitting back in an exhausted way.

For a few minutes she sat, watching the glitter and snowflakes settle. Looking down she saw there was a drawer and pulling it open revealed her copy of the Labyrinth, bound in red leather and embossed with gold lettering. She pulled it out carefully, lovingly, and held it to her chest as she moved from the vanity back to the bed once more where Ambrocious still lay silently.

Climbing into the bed she opened the book to the place she vaguely remembered before dozing off the night before and began to read. While she read, Ambrocious stirred beside her and clambered into her lap to sleep some more. She stroked his fur absently as she read a line from the book a few times over, never quite being able to comprehend what it was trying to convey. Snapping the book closed startled the dog on her lap into looking up at her, his head titled to the side.

"Why are we here, Ambrocious?" she asked softly ruffling the fur about his ears. As soon as she asked, there was a knock on the door attracting both of their gazes. She wondered if it would matter whether or not she answered whoever was behind the door. She almost didn't answer to see if she had any power over whether or not she saw anyone but with a look from Ambrocious she let out a breath and called, "Come in."

The door swung open to reveal none other than Jareth who after a brief moment walked into the room, shutting the door behind him. "How did you sleep?" he asked quietly as he walked to the foot of her bed, the cloak shed while he sported a loose top, the sleeves cut off. Even dressed so casually he was elegant.

"Fine," she murmured looking away from him and to Ambrocious who, though he wasn't barking, was looking at Jareth with a cautious dislike.

"I imagine you are wondering why I have brought you here," he said after a space of silence.

"Good imagination," Sarah remarked with just the slightest hint of steel in her tone.

The look he gave her was decidedly long-suffering as he sat on the edge of her bed.

"You are here, frankly, because I need a bride and you are the only person who has been able to control my thoughts for such a prolonged amount of time in all my long years," he said unyielding in his own tone.

It took a moment for his words to penetrate her mind but when they did she looked up at him, sharply, her mouth flying open at which point he held out a hand toward her to stop her torrent of words that he knew so well.

"I know, 'it's not fair'. Well, frankly I find it incredibly unfair that I should be left thinking about you for so long while you completely buried your memories and labeled your thoughts of me as nightmares. What do you think about that?" he asked, an eyebrow arched in question. She blushed at his confession as she looked down at Ambrocious. She didn't respond to his question that still hung in the air between them. How could she? She couldn't imagine what he had suffered but to bring her here to his kingdom like this?

"Why do you need a bride?" she countered, looking up at him finally into his dual colored eyes that seemed to want to ensnare her mind just as she, apparently, had trapped his.

"That is for me to know for the time being," he murmured in response before he stood and paced the room. The answer was unsatisfactory and she pursed her lips before asking her follow up.

"And if I refuse?"

He stopped pacing to look at her with a tight smile. "You won't." His response was confident and it threw her off kilter.

"You can't know that!" she finally stammered out, Ambrocious jumping from her lap as she sat up straighter, pulling her legs under her to sit on her knees on the bed. He simply smiled wickedly before walking to the door. Just before he walked out, he turned to her, waving a hand that opened up windows she didn't know existed in the room and she could see that it was still early morning.

"I forgot how beautiful you become when you're fiercely defying something... it almost makes up for the pain of the last 100 years in my kingdom-I have yet to decide whether it makes up for the challenge ahead of us, however," he admitted with a shrug as he exited the door, shutting it behind him, leaving a fired up woman in his wake.

Sarah launched herself off the bed and ran to the door only to find there was no door handle. She beat her fist against the door angrily before turning about to inspect the windows. From across the room they didn't look so very high but as she stood beneath them she realized there was a good 5 feet or so from her outstretched fingertips to the edge of the windowsill. Keeping her eyes on the window, she walked backward before tripping over her feet and falling on her butt on the carpet. She pulled her knees up slightly, resting her elbows on them with her hands to her lips. The "noble steed" came to her side and she looked down at him before scratching his head.

"What are we going to do, Ambrocious?" she asked, a headache beginning to throb in her temples. With a sigh she stood up and started searching for any secret doors and soon found one. Opening it eagerly, her expression fell in mild disappointment that lingered just a moment until she walked in and inspected the space, curiosity getting the better of her.

Sarah found a rather spacious bathroom in which there were also windows but just as the ones in the main bedroom were, they were far, above and beyond her reach. She found it curious that there was a bathtub but no shower—no quick washes here, apparently. Everything was white with chrome fixtures, the little rugs and such a dark chocolate color. Walking back into the bedroom, her curiosity now burning brightly, she checked the wardrobe and discovered a complete array of clothing even undergarments had been furnished for her. Before she could allow herself to think too hard on the subject, she plucked up a change of clothes, grimacing when she found that there were only dresses to be had, and walked back into the bathroom. Ambrocious had curled up in the sunshine that was to be had from the windows in the bedroom.

She smiled softly at the sight before closing the bathroom door behind her and, after locating a towel, she turned the water on in the bath and in no time, she was soaking in water that smelled of rose petals and cashmere. Figuring she had nothing else to do, she took her sweet time washing her hair and body before reluctantly pulling herself from the tub as the water drained from it.

Pulling the dress over her head, she zipped it up carefully, feeling as though she were walking on eggshells the fabric was so delicate. The cut was empirewaisted and the luxury of so much material flaring out from just below her bust was enticing and made it so she didn't mind so much that it was the only option of clothing aside from what she had arrived in. The sleeves weren't really what you would call sleeves, however, splitting at the shoulder and trailing to her wrists where the wrapped closely again.

Sarah ran her fingers carefully through her long brown hair before deciding on braiding it into a crown. It took a while before she was satisfied with the tightness of it without it being pulled too harshly from her high forehead. Walking back into the room, she realized there were no shoes to be had—perhaps that meant that she was going to be stuck in that room and thus didn't need shoes. The thought made her glower darkly as she plopped herself on the ground beside Ambrocious who had had to shift his position to remain in the window-filtered sunlight. She, too, lay in the sunlight the warmth causing a peace to come upon her as she blocked out all thoughts of goblins—or at least attempted to. After a while she recognized that she couldn't keep her eyes shut for too long before the events of the previous night paraded through her mind.

The terrifying transformation of Max into a goblin plagued her and left her feeling strangely guilty, as though she could have prevented Jareth from doing just exactly what he wanted to someone he clearly saw as a pesky but nonthreatening annoyance.

If the power had just not gone out, Max probably wouldn't have even known that Sarah had had someone trespass into her home. Probably. Most likely? Sarah rolled her eyes—no, Max had an uncanny way of showing up precisely when she least wanted him there. But regardless, she wondered what had become of him. Had he too been whisked away to Jareth's kingdom? Or had he suffered a more grisly fate?

She forced her thoughts away from Max and thought about how nice it would be to be outside, getting the sunlight directly along with a possible light breeze, birds singing and bees humming and before she knew it she had fallen asleep in the middle of the floor.

* * *

_Casidhe here! My insomnia is what has aided this chapter to getting out at 5:06 AM my time. Just so you know._

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	4. Tarea

Chapter 4: Tarea

Sarah awoke to Ambrocious' wet tongue on her cheek, causing her to squeal as she sat up to get out of his range. The sun was no longer shining directly through her windows but it seemed to still be earlier in the day rather than later. She almost asked what the silly dog was up to but sensing eyes on the back of her head, she whipped her gaze around to see a goblin peering around the edge of her door into her room. She tensed as she slowly stood up, straightening the skirt about her legs as she watched the goblin closely.

Perhaps recognizing that she was lucid he spouted, "Master Jareth invites the both of you to have lunch with him."

Sarah pursed her lips and, over the grumbling of her stomach, she steeled herself. "I'm not hungry. Though if you would bring something for Ambrocious, I would not oppose." By the end of her words, the goblin was shaking in his metal boots.

"But, m-mistress! If you do not come... the m-master will be most displeased!"

Sarah refused to be moved however as she moved to the vanity and sat down in the chair looking at the pictures of her family focusing steadily on the picture of a grown-up Toby. "Then his displeasure will only reflect my own," she said in her most regal voice and she realized that she had fallen back on her years of acting school... not that they had amounted to much.

"Y-yes, m-mistress," the creature said mournfully before whistling to Ambrocious who scurried after him out the door before Sarah could call the dog back in. She looked in disbelief at the door her last companion waltzed out of as her shoulders sagged. She knew in her heart of hearts that she was being childish but she dared not to admit it to herself or anyone else for that matter. Her heart burned as she looked around the room and searched for anything she could move under the window that might be able to boost her enough to escape out of them. The only furniture in the room, however, was the bed, the vanity and the chair. Inspecting these, she found the only thing not bolted to the floor was the chair and, when moved directly below the window, it only put her maybe two feet closer to her end goal.

She threw herself upon the bed, glowering up at the ceiling until a timid knock sounded on her door. She froze before a slow smile stretched across her face. Scrambling off the bed she walked toward the door as she called out, "Yes?" The door swung open and before the little goblin could announce why he had come back, she practically bowled him over and escaped into the hall. Looking right then left, she took off down the left hallway, picking her skirts up in bunches on both sides, her feet slapping rhythmically on the stone floor.

Turning a corner, Sarah ran into a courtyard filled with goblins—all of which looked up at her simultaneously. It would have been amusing had she not been sure that this would be her only chance ever to escape—once she returned to her world, she would simply call Ambrocious to her side once more like in the past. She paused only the briefest of moments before dashing for the door to her right. Halfway to her new goal, the goblins moved into...it could only have been called action had they actually been in pursuit of her but, glancing over her shoulder as she crossed the threshold, Sarah saw they looked more like a disturbed anthill, running this way and that with no idea what to do with themselves.

She laughed as she turned her face back to her path just as she slammed into something solid. She almost toppled onto her butt however strong hands grasped her arms and she looked up in horror to see... someone who was not Jareth. Her horror turned to confusion. It most definitely was not Jareth for his hair was dark as ebony and his skin was tanned. His eyes were two colors... the same colors as Jareth's in fact but on opposite sides of his face, the startling blue-gray on the left side of his face, the deep brown on the right.

"Oh, hello," he said with a warm smile. "You must be Sarah."

She nodded dumbly as she stepped away from his hands carefully, watching him warily.

"You needn't fear me, milady. For I will not bite," he smiled again and revealed that he had fangs which led Sarah to not fully trust his statement.

"Excuse me," she said as she tried to duck around him, hearing the sounds of the goblins' feet on her trail as they seemed to have finally gathered what wits they had amongst themselves.

"Milord! Please don't let her get away! Master Jareth will kill us if she is not back in her room before—," they plead but were cut off by a chilling voice in the air.

"Before what? I find out?"

Just as she completed her skirting around the dark-haired man, Sarah saw Jareth walking down the hall toward them. Sarah backpedaled and hid behind the man she had just run into seeing as he had turned toward Jareth whose eyes never wavered from her face as he spoke to the man.

"Tarea, I see that you've met my bride," he said darkly.

"Ah, yes, Sarah and I have just become acquainted. Why did you not introduce us earlier, brother? She is a lovely creature," Tarea said warmly, looking at Sarah as she tried to hide from Jareth's gaze.

Jareth seemed to ignore his brother as he walked closer to the two of them.

"I had a lunch prepared for you and yet you didn't come, Sarah," he said quietly.

"Where's Ambrocious?" she asked, her tone accusing as if he had forced the dog to leave her side.

"He obediently came when called, ate, and is now napping in the garden, I imagine," he said with a sigh. Sarah finally walked around Tarea and looked up at Jareth, her expression confused.

"You mean...I don't have to stay in the room...?"

"Forcing you to stay in your room forever as if you were my prisoner wouldn't exactly endear you to me, now would it?" he said with a smile. Her lips quivered before she turned her head to the left.

"I'm still not going to marry you," she said obstinately causing his smile to widen.

"We'll see," was his response before Tarea cleared his throat behind Sarah.

"Well now that that is settled, why don't we all retire to your garden? I am sure she can eat just as well there as the dining room and we can take a refreshing drink as I tell you my news," he said his voice tending more toward a bass than Jareth's. He was also simultaneously holding his arm out to Sarah as if asking permission to escort her and seeing the look of consternation on Jareth's face at the idea, Sarah easily slipped her hand into the crook of his brother's arm. Jareth's gaze was chilling but with a nod he turned on his heel and strode off down the corridor, Tarea and Sarah following at a slower pace.

"So, Sarah, if you don't mind my calling you so," Tarea started a lilt to his words as though asking permission and at Sarah's glance of encouragement he continued, "how are you liking your accommodations here at my brother's castle?"

Sarah pulled her bottom lip between her teeth momentarily as she watched Jareth's retreating back, the tension like a heat wave on his shoulders. "Well... I suppose it would have seemed much more pleasant had I known I wouldn't be limited to them," she admitted thinking on how the room had simply been a much more plush version of her own bedroom back in New York. He hummed softly beside her and looking up she saw that he looked deep in thought, and she noted that his hair was just as long as Jareth's though of a more modest fashion-it flowed down his back, whisked away from his temples by fine braids that disappeared into the flow.

On the periphery of her thoughts she even registered that he was handsome...

His thoughtful look turned amused, his eyes never diverting from their forward attention but his words were directed softly at her. "You'll make me blush, Sarah, if you intend to continue looking with such intensity at me," he said causing Sarah to snap her gaze away.

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_*bows humbly*_

_Casidhe here! I know this is super duper short but I wanted to get something out to let you guys know I am thinking about you and this story. I'm just struggling with a few things currently. Thank you so much for you support!_

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_And hey! Confirmation for a sequel! What is everyone's thoughts? I'm a little on the fence myself... :)_

_CB_


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